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• coop
  coop

  noun

  an enclosure, cage, or pen, usually with bars or wires, in which fowls or other small animals are confined for fattening, transportation, etc.
• coop.
  coop.

  abbreviation

  cooperative.

coop

¹ American  

[koop, koop] / kup, kʊp /

noun

• coops
  plural

1. an enclosure, cage, or pen, usually with bars or wires, in which fowls or other small animals are confined for fattening, transportation, etc.

2. any small or narrow place.

3. Slang. a prison.

4. Sometimes Facetious. a cooperative, especially the cooperative bookstore of a college or university.

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verb (used with object)

• coops,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cooped,
  past participle,  past
• cooping
  present participle

1. to place in or as if in a coop; confine narrowly (often followed by up orin ).

verb (used without object)

• coops,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cooped,
  past participle,  past
• cooping
  present participle

1. Slang. (of a police officer) to park and sleep inside one's patrol car while on duty.

idioms

1. fly the coop, to run off; depart abruptly; escape.

   We stopped to see my sister, but she'd flown the coop.

coop. ² American  

Or co-op

abbreviation

1. cooperative.

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coop ¹ British  

/ kuːp /

noun

1. a cage or small enclosure for poultry or small animals

2. a small narrow place of confinement, esp a prison cell

3. a wicker basket for catching fish

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verb

1. (tr; often foll by up or in) to confine in a restricted area

coop ² British  

/ ˈkəʊˌɒp /

noun

1. a cooperative, cooperative society, or shop run by a cooperative society

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coop ³ British  

abbreviation

1. a cooperative

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coop. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. cooperative

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coop More Idioms  

1. see fly the coop.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• uncoop
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• coops
  plural

Participles

• cooping
  present
• cooped
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• coop
  simple
• coops
  simple
• have cooped
  perfect
• has cooped
  perfect
• am cooping
  progressive
• are cooping
  progressive
• is cooping
  progressive
• have been cooping
  perfect progressive
• has been cooping
  perfect progressive

Past

• cooped
  simple
• had cooped
  perfect
• was cooping
  progressive
• were cooping
  progressive
• had been cooping
  perfect progressive

Future

• will coop
  simple
• will have cooped
  perfect
• will be cooping
  progressive
• will have been cooping
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of coop

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English coupe “basket,” perhaps from Scandinavian or ultimately from Latin cūpa “cask, tub” ( see cup ( def. )); cognate with Norwegian kaup “wooden can,” Old English cȳpa “basket”

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Explanation

A coop is a small enclosed area or structure where chickens are kept. If you feel cooped up, you feel like you’re stuck in a small space, like a giant chicken in a tiny cage. A coop is where chickens get shelter from bad weather and predators. Without a hyphen, the word co-op, which is short for co-operative organization, turns into coop. That can be confusing to chickens because they don’t know if they will have meetings or a safe place to lay eggs. Coop comes from the Old English word cype, "basket" or "cask," with the Latin root cupa, "cask" or "tub."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

coop coop. coops cooped cooping

Their farmhouse was already old when I first saw it in 1966, complete with a chicken coop out back.

From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2026

The bird initially was enjoying time with the chickens, but by the next day he decided he had enough of his friends in the coop.

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026

The gated lot has a chicken coop, a horse corral, an organic garden and fruit trees.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 5, 2026

When your kids have flown the coop, this is where you will probably spend your retirement years, so picture yourselves living there if/when you have reduced mobility.

From MarketWatch ● Jan. 21, 2026

Had she erred in trusting them to go to the chicken coop alone?

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

“You shall have to bring the chickens—I mean, baby dodos—back to the chicken coop. Understood?”

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

"Two canaries,” Dad shouted, "known as Peter and Maggie and by other aliases, have flown the coop. No matter. We wouldn’t think of delaying you further.”

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

“As I was leaving, I passed this old guy in his yard. Sparks from the fire burned his chicken coop. I asked if I could help. He said yes.”

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

“Wonderful. Find the book and bring it to the chicken coop. Simawoo will know what to do with it. Wait for me there. And remember, when it comes to the birds...”

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

“This lady,” I say, “she walked by and said a lot of people around here have chickens. That they might need a coop. Do you think that’s true?”

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Residents report bears rummaging through trash, raiding chicken coops and—like any good Southern Californian—dipping into backyard pools.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 17, 2025

Where the animals go after that is up to them, and although there have been some attacks on chicken coops, Sarmento says there have not been many.

From BBC ● Jan. 5, 2025

I used reference images that I took when I visited the land in Apple Valley and images of other chicken coops that I’ve been looking at.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2023

"Fish may simply not encounter much ammonium in the water, while chicken coops are filled with ammonium that needs to be avoided and not eaten."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 5, 2023

Apparently, word has gotten out about cheap, local, handcrafted coops.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Martin-Coppen added: "We are not talking small animals. We are talking pure muscle, pure power, untrained, cooped up in a small house."

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

A lot of workers end up cooped up in their office all day, never taking, or being able to take, time to step outdoors for fresh air.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 25, 2025

“Thanks to the birds, I have never felt cooped up staying at home. So much remains new, so much can be discovered,” she writes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2024

When COVID-19 first began spreading around the world, and cities went into lockdown, many people joked that keeping couples cooped up in their homes would lead to a baby boom.

From Salon ● Feb. 14, 2024

Noodles explained that he couldn't stay all cooped up in that place, so he came outside to get some fresh air.

From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds

We also don’t mean cooping up post-exposure to a pathogen to contain the threat.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 24, 2021

There is still one authorized cooping location: the precinct station house itself.

From New York Times ● Jan. 17, 2014

In New York City, large numbers of policemen seem to have the sleeping-on-duty habit, which they call "cooping."

From Time Magazine Archive

I forgot my earlier ambivalence, and I blamed Papa for everything: his young woman, his hurting Mama, his cooping me up while he went gallivanting around.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

I’d rather be outside with the men, rounding up the goats and cooping the chickens for the night, feeling hot inside my coat from the effort as my breath fogs out in the cold.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

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